LURA, Dillard’s settle on price of $5.5 million

LONGMONT – Longmont’s elected officials agreed Tuesday night to pay Dillard’s Inc. $5.5 million for its store in Longmont, paving the way for an $80 million redevelopment at Twin Peaks Mall to start as early as Feb. 18.

The Longmont Urban Renewal Authority last week reached an agreement to settle its eminent-domain case against Dillard’s Inc. (NYSE: DDS) for the 94,000-square-foot store and the 7.1 acres around it.

LURA – which is made up of Longmont’s elected city council members – approved measures related to the settlement agreement. The transfer of the Dillard’s title to NewMark Merrill is slated to take place on Valentine’s Day – Friday, Feb. 14.

Redevelopment project manager Allen Ginsborg attended Tuesday night’s Longmont City Council meeting but did not speak. He also declined a request for comment from a Boulder County Business Report representative. Ginsborg is a principal at NewMark Merrill Mountain States, a commercial real estate firm based in Fort Collins.

The agreement cancels the need for a jury trial scheduled for April that would have determined the price LURA would have had to pay Dillard’s for its store and property in Longmont.

In December, a three-member commission determined a preliminary value of $6.3 million for the Dillard’s store and property, the same amount submitted by Dillard’s appraisers. LURA appraisers had valued the store at $3.03 million.NewMark Merrill Mountain States will pay $5 million of the total amount, according to the settlement agreement.

The agreement paves the way for the The Village at the Peaks redevelopment where Twin Peaks Mall now stands. LURA representatives said last week that the city would pay Dillard’s $500,000 to help the retailer cover its legal costs.

Infrastructure at The Village at the Peaks mall redevelopment project is expected to partially befinanced with tax-increment financing. The city has committed $27.5 million from bond proceeds to assist with the project.

Village at the Peaks is a proposed 481,000-square-foot shopping center. It is 50 percent preleased, according to city press release. A Whole Foods Market, a Sam’s Club and a Regal Cinema 12-screen movie theater are planned for the site.